Control device, control method, program, and projection system

ABSTRACT

The present technology relates to a control device, a method for control, a program, and a projection system that enable to, in a case where input information is to be presented by projecting an image, naturally attract the attention of a person around a projection surface. A control device of an aspect of the present technology projects an image representing input information onto a projection surface so as to follow an input of the input information, with an effect in accordance with the type of the projection surface. As the projection surface, a thin sheet material attached on a wall surface is prepared, for example. The color of the thin sheet material is a dark color, for example, and in time with projection of the image representing a handwritten character or picture, a sound, which will come out when the character or the picture is drawn with a chalk on a chalkboard, is output from a speaker installed on the back side of the projection surface. The present technology can be applied to a system that presents information by projecting an image from a projector.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present technology relates to a control device, a control method, aprogram, and a projection system, and more particularly, relates to acontrol device, a control method, a program, and a projection systemthat are capable of, in a case where input information is to bepresented by projecting an image, naturally attracting the attention ofa person around a projection surface.

BACKGROUND ART

In recent years, spatial presentation using a projector is performed inmany cases. An unusual presentation can be performed by displaying a CGimage not only onto a building but also onto a variety of objects suchas furniture or a daily commodity as a projection surface.

CITATION LIST Patent Document

-   Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.    2016-162142

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention

However, a space where an image is projected varies, and it has beendifficult in some cases to attract the attention of a person around aprojection surface only by projecting the image.

The present technology is made in consideration of such a situation, andenables, in a case where input information is to be presented byprojecting the image, to naturally attract the attention of the personaround the projection surface.

Solutions to Problems

A control device of an aspect of the present technology includes aprocess unit that causes an image representing input information to beprojected onto a projection surface so as to follow an input of theinput information, with an effect in accordance with a type of theprojection surface.

There can be further provided a sound effect control unit that causes asound effect synchronized with the image representing the inputinformation to be output, as an effect in accordance with the type ofthe projection surface.

The sound effect control unit can cause a speaker to output the soundeffect, the speaker being installed on a back side of the projectionsurface.

The sound effect control unit can cause the sound effect to be output,the sound effect varying in accordance with a time elapsed from start ofinput of the input information.

The sound effect control unit can cause the sound effect to be output,the sound effect being different in accordance with the type of theprojection surface.

The process unit can determine the type of the projection surface on thebasis of information regarding the projection surface, the informationbeing obtained by performing a sensing process for the projectionsurface.

The information regarding the projection surface can include informationindicating a material of the projection surface, and the effect can bemade so as to correspond to the information indicating the material ofthe projection surface.

The input information is manually entered by a user and transmitted froma mobile terminal, and the process unit can cause the image representinga trajectory of the manual input to be projected.

There can be further provided a recognition unit that recognizes, on thebasis of the input information, a character entered by the user. In thiscase, the process unit can cause the image, in which a picture moves, tobe projected, the picture showing the recognition result of thecharacter.

A projection system of another aspect of the present technology includesa control device having an image control unit that causes an imagerepresenting input information to be projected so as to follow an inputof the input information, and a sound effect control unit that causes asound effect in accordance with a type of a projection surface of theimage to be output in synchronization with the image representing theinput information, a projection device that projects the imagerepresenting the input information onto the projection surface, theimage being supplied from the control device, and another projectiondevice that projects a predetermined image onto a projection surfacedifferent from the projection surface, the predetermined image beingsupplied from the control device.

There can be further included a speaker installed on a back side of theprojection surface onto which the image representing the inputinformation is projected.

With the present technology, an image representing input information isprojected onto a projection surface so as to follow an input of theinput information, with an effect in accordance with a type of theprojection surface.

Effects of the Invention

The present technology enables, in a case where the input information isto be presented by projecting the image, to naturally attract theattention of a person around the projection surface.

Note that the above-described effects are not necessarily limited andcan be any effect described in the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a use state of a projection systemaccording to an embodiment of the present technology.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe projection system.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a handwriting image and a sound effect.

FIG. 4 illustrates another example of a handwriting image and a soundeffect.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of movement of an illustration of fish.

FIG. 6 illustrates examples of illustrations.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareconfiguration of a control device.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functionconfiguration of the control device.

FIG. 9 illustrates examples of types of a projection surface and thesound effect.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart to explain control processes of the controldevice.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a function configuration of theprojection system.

FIG. 12 illustrates an example of a function configuration of theprojection system.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofa tablet terminal.

FIG. 14 illustrates an example of another use state of the projectionsystem.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofa computer.

MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The following describes an embodiment of the present technology. Thedescription will be made in the following order.

1. Example of configuration of projection system2. Example of handwriting image and sound effect2-1. First example2-2. Second example3. Example of configuration and operation of control device3-1. Configuration of control device3-2. Operation of control device

4. Modification

<<Example of Configuration of Projection System>>

FIG. 1 illustrates an example of a use state of a projection systemaccording to an embodiment of the present technology.

The projection system of FIG. 1 is used, for example, in a building of apublic institution or in a store, and projects an image onto aprojection board 21 including a thin sheet material, attached on a wallsurface W. The surface of the projection board 21 is a dark color, withwhich the projection board presents a situation as if a small chalkboardis hung on the wall surface W.

Above the projection board 21, there is provided a projector 11 in whichthe light-illumination direction is directed to the projection board 21.The illumination range (projection range) of the projector 11 isadjusted so as to approximately coincide with the range of theprojection board 21. Note that, as another possible aspect, theillumination range of the projector 11 may not coincide with the rangeof the projection board 21. For example, the size of the illuminationrange can be smaller than the size of the projection board 21, or can belarger than the size of the projection board 21 (in other words, theillumination range includes the projection board 21 and an extra area).

As illustrated with dashed lines, a speaker 12 is installed on the backside of the projection board 21. The speaker 12 is installed at aposition not visible from the front of the projection board 21.

The projection system of FIG. 1 may also be used outdoors. In addition,a projection surface of the projector 11 may be the wall surface Witself instead of the projection board 21 attached on the wall surfaceW, or may be any other type of plane such as a floor surface or a topboard of a table. The projection surface may also be any type of surfacesuch as a surface of an automobile or a surface of a chair, which is nota plane. The installation positions of the projector 11 and the speaker12 are changeable as appropriate depending on the position of theprojection surface.

In the projection system of FIG. 1, projection content for the projector11 is entered by using a tablet terminal 1. A body of the tabletterminal 1 is provided with a display in which a touch panel with atouch sensor is laminated. As illustrated in the bottom right of FIG. 1,a user of the tablet terminal 1 can enter a character, a picture, andthe like by touching the display surface directly with a finger.

Information indicating input positions of the manual input made by theuser is transmitted to a control device provided at a predeterminedposition. The control device causes the projector 11 to project an imagerepresenting the content entered by the user. The image projected by theprojector 11 is a drawn image of a handwriting, and is updated anddisplayed substantially in real-time following the input operation ofthe user. Note that the handwriting mentioned here represents atrajectory of input positions of a manual input performed with a finger,a stylus pen, or the like.

In the following, an image projected by the projector 11 in response toan input of a user is referred to as a handwriting image as appropriate.

Furthermore, the control device causes the speaker 12 to output a soundeffect synchronized with the handwriting image projected by theprojector 11.

In other words, a projection system 2, which is the projection system ofFIG. 1, includes the projector 11, the speaker 12, and the controldevice 13 as illustrated in FIG. 2. With this system, the user can enterinformation remotely using the tablet terminal 1. Transmission andreception of information between the projector 11 and the control device13, and between the speaker 12 and the control device 13 are performedby a wired communication, or by a standardized wireless communicationsuch as a wireless local area network (LAN) and Bluetooth (registeredtrademark).

Thus, the projection system 2 projects entered information in real-timeat a remote position, and outputs from the back side of a projectionsurface a sound effect in accordance with the projection. Consequently,a person around the projection surface notices that the handwritingimage is being projected by looking in the direction in which the soundcomes out, in response to the sound.

The user entering the information using the tablet terminal 1 can causethe person around the projection surface to naturally notice that theinformation is being presented. The projection system 2 is mainly usedto present information entered in handwriting, to a person around theprojection surface.

<<Example of Handwriting Image and Sound Effect>>

First Example

FIG. 3 illustrates an example of the handwriting image and the soundeffect to be output by the projection system 2.

In FIG. 3, the upper row indicates a state of input to the tabletterminal 1 at each time. The middle row indicates a handwriting image atthe corresponding time. The lower row indicates a sound effect to beoutput synchronized with the handwriting image.

In a case where, at a time t1, the user touches (makes contact with) aposition p1 on the display of the tablet terminal 1 with a finger, theprojection board 21 becomes a state in which a handwriting image with aposition P1 as the input start position is projected. The position P1 onthe projection board 21 corresponds to the position p1 on the display ofthe tablet terminal 1.

Furthermore, in synchronization with the handwriting image, the speaker12 outputs, as a sound effect, an attack sound representing that a chalkis applied to a chalkboard. The attack sound is reproduced momentarily.

Subsequently, the person around the projection board 21, reacting to theattack sound and turning back, will be looking at the handwriting imageto be updated. The user of the tablet terminal 1 continues the input bymoving the finger without putting it off the display surface.

In a case where, at a time t2, the user has moved the finger to aposition p2 on the display of the tablet terminal 1, the projectionboard 21 becomes a state in which a handwriting image of a curved lineextended from the position P1 to a position P2 is projected, asindicated by the tip of an arrow #11. The position P2 on the projectionboard 21 corresponds to the position p2 on the display of the tabletterminal 1. In synchronization with the handwriting image of the curvedline to be extended from the position P1 to the position P2, the speaker12 keeps outputting, as a sound effect, a drawing sound representing asound generated when a chalk is rubbed against a chalkboard.

In a case where, at a time t3, the user has moved the finger to aposition p3 on the display of the tablet terminal 1, the projectionboard 21 becomes a state in which the handwriting image of the curvedline further extended from the position P2 to a position P3 isprojected, as pointed by the tip of an arrow #12. The position P3 on theprojection board 21 corresponds to the position p3 on the display of thetablet terminal 1. In synchronization with the handwriting image of thecurved line to be extended from the position P2 to the position P3, thespeaker 12 keeps outputting the drawing sound as the sound effect.

In a case where, at a time t4, the user puts the finger off the positionp3 on the display of the tablet terminal 1, the projection board 21becomes a state in which the handwriting image having a wavy line withthe input start position as the position P1 and the input end positionas the position P3, as pointed by the tip of an arrow #13. When thehandwriting extends to the position P3, the sound effect reproductionstops.

The handwriting is expressed with a partially diluted line like, forexample, a line drawn with a chalk on a chalkboard. Together with thesound effect described above coming out from the projection surface,presentation of a situation as if an invisible person is drawing a linewith a chalk on a chalkboard is achieved.

In a case where the projection system 2 is installed in a public spaceor the like for the purpose of presenting information, drawing the eyesof a surrounding person on the projection surface is important. The eyesof the surrounding person can be naturally turned to the projectionsurface by using the projection surface as a generation source to makethe sound effect.

Furthermore, outputting the sound effect synchronized with thehandwriting image enables to naturally notify the surrounding personthat the information is updated continuously. Methods for notifyingupdate of information include a method of reproducing an alert sound asperformed in, for example, a smartphone, a tablet terminal, and thelike. Unfortunately, such a method is taken to attract an attention of aperson only momentarily, and not to attract the attention continuously.Outputting the sound effect in the manner as described above enables tonotify that information is updated continuously.

Second Example

FIG. 4 illustrates another example of a handwriting image and a soundeffect.

With reference to FIG. 4, a handwriting image and a sound effect in acase where a handwritten character is entered are described below.Redundant description with respect to that of FIG. 3 is omitted asnecessary.

In a case where, at a time t11, a user touches a position p11 on thedisplay of the tablet terminal 1 with a finger, the projection board 21becomes a state in which a handwriting image with a position P11 as theinput start position is projected. The position P11 on the projectionboard 21 corresponds to the position p11 on the display of the tabletterminal 1. Furthermore, the speaker 12 outputs, as a sound effect, anattack sound synchronized with the handwriting image.

In a case where, at a time t12, the user has moved the finger to aposition p12 on the display of the tablet terminal 1 and completedwriting an alphabetical character “f”, the projection board 21 becomes astate in which a handwriting image of the alphabetical character “f” isprojected, as pointed by the tip of an arrow #21. Furthermore, thespeaker 12 keeps outputting a drawing sound as a sound effect insynchronization with the handwriting image of the appearing character“f”.

In a case where, at a time t13, the user has moved the finger to aposition p13 on the display of the tablet terminal 1 and completedwriting an alphabetical character “h” following alphabetical characters“f”, “i”, and “s”, the projection board 21 becomes a state in which ahandwriting image of the alphabetical character “h” next to thealphabetical characters “f”, “i”, and “s” is projected, as pointed bythe tip of an arrow #22. Furthermore, the speaker 12 keeps outputtingthe drawing sound as the sound effect in synchronization with thehandwriting image of the appearing character “h”.

In a case where, at a time t14, the user puts the finger off theposition p13 on the display of the tablet terminal 1, the projectionboard 21 becomes a state in which a handwriting image of the handwrittencharacters “fish” is projected, as pointed by the tip of an arrow #23.When the drawing of the character “h” ends, the sound effectreproduction stops.

When the drawing of the character “h” ends, the control device 13recognizes the characters “fish” manually entered, and an illustrationI1 of fish appears near the characters “fish”. The image of theillustration I1 is not information entered by the user in handwriting,but is an image generated automatically by the control device 13. Asdescribed above, a handwriting to be drawn is not limited to onesmanually entered by the user.

The control device 13 manages illustration data in association withvarious characters. The illustration I1 of fish is an image representedby a line drawn with a chalk on a chalkboard.

As described above, the control device 13 can automatically generate andproject images of various types of additional information such ascharacters and pictures related to the content entered by the user, andcause the characters and pictures to be projected in addition to thehandwriting of the user. After the illustration I1 appears near thecharacters “fish”, an image in which the illustration I1 of fish movesis projected.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the movement of the illustration I1 offish.

As illustrated at the leftmost in FIG. 5, the illustration I1 thatappears at a position P21 on the projection board 21 moves from theposition P21 to a position P22 while taking a predetermined time, aspointed by the tip of an arrow #31. Furthermore, the illustration I1moves from the position P22 to a position P23 while taking anotherpredetermined time, as pointed by the tip of an arrow #32. As describedabove, an animation of a moving illustration may also be projected.

FIG. 6 illustrates examples of illustrations that appear in response toinput of handwritten characters.

In a case where characters “Olive” are entered as illustrated in A ofFIG. 6, a handwriting image in which an illustration 12 of an oliveappears is projected. Furthermore, in a case where characters “Sea” areentered as illustrated in B of FIG. 6, a handwriting image in which anillustration 13 of a ship appears is projected. After the illustrationsappear, handwriting images in which the illustrations moves areprojected as appropriate.

As described above, the projection system 2 achieves presentation of asituation as if an invisible person is drawing a picture or a characterwith a chalk on a chalkboard. The process performed by the controldevice 13 to make such a presentation as above is described later withreference to a flowchart.

<<Example of Configuration and Operation of Control Device>>

<Configuration of Control Device>

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareconfiguration of the control device 13.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, the control device 13 includes a CPU 51, a ROM52, a RAM 53, an input unit 55, an output unit 56, a storage unit 57,and a communication unit 58 that are connected via a bus 54.

The central processing unit (CPU) 51 executes a program, which is storedin, for example, the read only memory (ROM) 52, using the random accessmemory (RAM) 53, to control the entire operation of the control device13.

The input unit 55 includes a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, andaccepts an operation of a manager of the projection system.

The output unit 56 includes a display, a speaker, and the like, whichare not illustrated. A signal of a handwriting image to be projected bythe projector 11 and a signal of a sound effect to be output from thespeaker 12 may be output from the output unit 56 instead of thecommunication unit 56. In this case, the output unit 56 functions as aninterface to output a video signal of the handwriting image and an audiosignal of the sound effect.

The storage unit 57 includes a hard disk, a flash memory, and the like.The storage unit 57 stores various types of information such as theprogram to be executed by the CPU 51, data to be used to project thehandwriting image, and data of the sound effect.

The communication unit 58 transmits the data of the handwriting image tothe projector 11, and transmits the data of the sound effect to thespeaker 12, by a wired communication or a wireless communication. Inaddition, the communication unit 58 communicates with external equipmentvia the Internet as required.

Note that the tablet terminal 1 also has a configuration that isbasically similar to the configuration of the control device 13illustrated in FIG. 7

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functionconfiguration of the control device 13. At least one of the functionalunits of the control device 13 illustrated in FIG. 8 is achieved with apredetermined program executed by the CPU 51 of FIG. 7. FIG. 8 alsoillustrates a part of the configuration of each of the tablet terminal1, the projector 11, and the speaker 12.

A handwriting input unit 101 of the tablet terminal 1 detects an inputof the user made on the touch panel. As detecting the input of the user,the handwriting input unit 101 transmits handwriting information to thecontrol device 13 via a communication unit of the tablet terminal 1 (acommunication unit 103 later described in FIG. 13). For instance,information indicating coordinates of the input position at each time istransmitted as the handwriting information. The handwriting input unit101 repeats transmitting the handwriting information from start of aninput until end of the input.

In the control device 13, a handwriting information obtaining unit 111,a handwriting process unit 112, an image and sound process unit 113, animage control unit 114, and a sound effect control unit 115 areimplemented.

The handwriting information obtaining unit 111 controls thecommunication unit 58 and obtains the handwriting information byperforming a process such as receiving the handwriting informationtransmitted from the tablet terminal 1. The handwriting informationobtaining unit 111 outputs the obtained handwriting information to thehandwriting process unit 112.

The handwriting process unit 112 calculates coordinate information ofthe handwriting at each timing from the start of input to the end ofinput made on the projection board 21, on the basis of the handwritinginformation supplied from the handwriting information obtaining unit111, and outputs the calculated information to the image and soundprocess unit 113.

In addition, at input of a character by the user, the handwritingprocess unit 112 recognizes the entered character on the basis of thehandwriting information. Thus, the handwriting process unit 112functions as a recognition unit to recognize a character entered by theuser.

The handwriting process unit 112 obtains, after recognition of thecharacter, information of an illustration corresponding to therecognized character, and outputs coordination information indicating aposition to display the illustration, to the image and sound processunit 113. The handwriting process unit 112 also outputs to the image andsound process unit 113 coordinate information of various types ofadditional information besides the illustration, the additionalinformation being presented in addition to the information entered bythe user of the tablet terminal 1.

As described above, the handwriting process unit 112 holds informationfor recognizing characters, and manages various types of additionalinformation such as illustrations in association with recognitionresults of characters. Such additional information may also be obtainedfrom external equipment connected via the Internet.

The image and sound process unit 113 analyzes the coordinate informationsupplied from the handwriting process unit 112 to generate a handwritingimage. In addition, the image and sound process unit 113 generates asound effect synchronized with the handwriting image, in accordance witha type of the projection board 21 to be the projection surface.

FIG. 9 illustrates examples of types of the projection surface.

The examples in FIG. 9 indicate a chalkboard, a board, and a paper asthe types of the projection surface, and sound effects A, B, and C asthe sound effects corresponding to the above types, respectively.

The sound effect A is data of a sound effect (an attack sound and adrawing sound) representing a sound to come out when a line is drawnwith a chalk on a chalkboard. The sound effect B is data of a soundeffect representing a sound to come out when a line is drawn with paintor the like on a board surface. The sound effect C is data of a soundeffect representing a sound to come out when a line is drawn with apencil or a pen on a paper.

As described above, the image and sound process unit 113 manages data ofsound effects corresponding to types (materials) of various projectionsurfaces. For instance, the user of the tablet terminal 1 selects a typeof the projection surface in advance before projection of a handwritingimage starts. The image and sound process unit 113 generates a soundeffect by using the data corresponding to the type of the projectionsurface selected by the user of the tablet terminal 1.

In addition, the examples in FIG. 9 indicate information of handwritingsin association with the types of the projection surface. The informationof handwritings is used for selecting a type of a line for a handwritingto be drawn in the handwriting image. Chalk, paint or the like, andpencil or pen are indicated as the information of handwritingscorresponding to the types of the chalkboard, the board, and the paper,respectively.

As described above, the image and sound process unit 113 also managesinformation of handwritings corresponding to types (materials) ofvarious projection surfaces. The handwriting image is generated also byusing the data corresponding to the type of the projection surface. Atype of a projection surface is not set by the user of the tabletterminal 1, but may also be set automatically by the control device 13,by means of analyzing an image captured by a camera installed in theprojector 11. The content of FIG. 9 is stored in a predeterminedrecording medium by the storage unit 57 as, for example, a database inwhich pieces of information including the types of the projectionsurfaces, the sound effects, and the handwritings are associated witheach other.

The image and sound process unit 113 outputs data of the handwritingimage to the image control unit 114, and outputs data of the soundeffect generated in accordance with the type of the projection board 21to the sound effect control unit 115.

The image control unit 114 reproduces the data supplied from the imageand sound process unit 113. The image control unit 114 controls thecommunication unit 58 to transmit the data of the handwriting image tothe projector 11, and causes the projector 11 to project the handwritingimage.

The sound effect control unit 115 reproduces the data supplied from theimage and sound process unit 113. The sound effect control unit 115controls the communication unit 58 to transmit the data of the soundeffect to the speaker 12, and causes the speaker 12 to output the soundeffect.

The handwriting information obtaining unit 111, the handwriting processunit 112, the image and sound process unit 113, the image control unit114, and the sound effect control unit 115 configure a process unit thatcauses the image to be projected so as to follow an input of thehandwriting information as the input information, with the sound effectin accordance with the projection surface.

An image output unit 121 of the projector 11 determines whether or notthe data of the handwriting image is updated, and receives the data ofthe handwriting image transmitted from the control device 13. The imageoutput unit 121 causes the handwriting image to be projected onto theprojection board 21 on the basis of the received data.

A sound effect output unit 131 of the speaker 12 determines whether ornot the sound effect is updated, and receives the data of the soundeffect transmitted from the control device 13. The sound effect outputunit 131 causes the sound effect to be output from the speaker 12 on thebasis of the received data.

<Operation of Control Device>

In the following, a control process of the control device 13 forcontrolling projection of the handwriting image and output of the soundeffect is described with reference to a flowchart of FIG. 10. Theprocess of FIG. 10 starts when the tablet terminal 1 is operated and thehandwriting information is transmitted from the tablet terminal 1.

In step S1, the handwriting information obtaining unit 111 receives thehandwriting information transmitted from the tablet terminal 1.

In step S2, the handwriting process unit 112 calculates the coordinateinformation of the handwriting at each timing from the start of input tothe end of input on the basis of the handwriting information obtainedfrom the handwriting information obtaining unit 111.

In step S3, the image and sound process unit 113 determines the type ofthe projection surface. For instance, the image and sound process unit113 determines the type of the projection surface by reading informationset in advance by the user.

Alternatively, the image and sound process unit 113 determines the typeof the projection surface by analyzing an image captured by a camerainstalled in the projector 11. In other words, in this case, the imageand sound process unit 113 performs sensing for the projection surfaceto obtain information regarding the projection surface, and determinesthe type of the projection surface on the basis of the informationregarding the projection surface. The information regarding theprojection surface mentioned here includes information indicating thematerial of the projection surface.

Note that in a case where the projection range includes an area otherthan the projection board 21 (in other words, areas of a plurality oftypes and materials), the type of the projection surface may bedetermined for each area. In this case, it may also be possible toidentify the handwriting information in terms of to which area thehandwriting is entered, and add an effect according to the typecorresponding to the area where the handwriting is entered.

In step S4, the image and sound process unit 113 analyzes theinformation supplied from the handwriting process unit 112 to generate ahandwriting image, and generates a sound effect in accordance with thetype of the projection surface.

In step S5, the image control unit 114 transmits the data of thehandwriting image generated by the image and sound process unit 113, tothe projector 11, and causes the projector 11 to project the handwritingimage.

In step S6, the sound effect control unit 115 transmits the data of thesound effect generated by the image and sound process unit 113, to thespeaker 12, and causes the speaker 12 to output the sound effect.

In step S7, the handwriting information obtaining unit 111 monitors theinformation transmitted from the tablet terminal 1, to determine whetheror not input of the user has ended. In a case where it is determinedthat the input of the user is not ended because the handwritinginformation is still continuously transmitted, the control processreturns to step S1 to repeat the process described above.

In a case where it is determined that the input of the user is ended instep S7, the process ends.

With the above-described process, the user of the tablet terminal 1 canenter a character or a picture in handwriting and cause an imagerepresenting the entered content to be projected with an effect inaccordance with the type of the projection surface.

<<Modification>>

<Modification of Configuration of Projection System>

It is possible to appropriately change in which device eachconfiguration in FIG. 8 is implemented.

FIG. 11 illustrates an example of a function configuration of theprojection system 2.

In the example of FIG. 11, the handwriting information obtaining unit111, the handwriting process unit 112, the image and sound process unit113, the image control unit 114, and the sound effect control unit 115are implemented in the tablet terminal 1. Thus, the tablet terminal 1can be equipped with the functions of the control device 13.

FIG. 12 illustrates further another example of a function configurationof the projection system 2.

In the example of FIG. 12, the handwriting information obtaining unit111, the handwriting process unit 112, the image and sound process unit113, the image control unit 114, and the sound effect control unit 115are implemented in the projector 11. Thus, the projector 11 can beequipped with the functions of the control device 13.

The control device 13 is not required in a case where the projectionsystem 2 has the configuration illustrated in FIG. 11 or FIG. 12.

Note that the configuration of the control device 13 illustrated in FIG.8 may also be implemented with a plurality of devices. In this case, theplurality of devices that share and implement the configuration of thecontrol device 13 illustrated in FIG. 8 is connected via a network.

The control device 13 may also be installed on the Internet so thatcommunication between the tablet terminal 1 and the control device 13,communication between the projector 11 and the control device 13, andcommunication between the speaker 12 and the control device 13 areperformed via the Internet.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration ofthe tablet terminal 1 having the above-described handwriting input unit101.

As illustrated in FIG. 13, the tablet terminal 1 includes a process unit101A having the handwriting input unit 101, a display unit 102, and acommunication unit 103.

The process unit 101A controls the entire operation of the tabletterminal 1. For instance, the process unit 101A detects an input of theuser made on the touch panel, and uses the handwriting input unit 101 totransmit handwriting information to the control device 13. In addition,the process unit 101A generates an image corresponding to thehandwriting information, and makes the display unit 102 display theimage.

The display unit 102 as the above-described display displays the imagecorresponding to the handwriting information supplied from the processunit 101A.

The communication unit 103 transmits the handwriting information to thecontrol device 13 in accordance with the control of the handwritinginput unit 101 of the process unit 101A.

FIG. 14 illustrates an example of another use state of the projectionsystem.

In the example of FIG. 14, three projectors, which are projectors 11-1to 11-3, are installed on the wall surface W as the projectors toproject content entered in the tablet terminal 1.

The projector 11-1 projects, similarly to the projector 11 above, animage onto the projection board 21. The projector 11-2 and the projector11-3 installed on the right and left with the projector 11-1 in betweenproject images onto the wall surface W. These projectors are installedon the wall surface W so that the projection surfaces closely align.

The control device 13 can coordinate the projectors 11-1 to 11-3 tocause a single image to be projected. For instance, the control device13 can control and coordinate the projectors 11-1 to 11-3 bycommunication, and cause an image of the illustration I1 of fish to beprojected, so as to move to a position on the projection surface of theprojector 11-3, the image appearing on the projection board 21 after therecognition of the characters as described above.

In this case, the projector 11-1 projects a handwriting imagerepresenting the information entered in the tablet terminal 1, and theprojectors 11-2 and 11-3 project a predetermined image coordinating withthe projection content of the projector 11-1.

In a case where an image in which the illustration of fish moves acrossa plurality of projection surfaces is projected, the handwriting of theillustration of fish may be changed in real-time in accordance with thearea onto which the moving illustration of fish is projected. Forinstance, projection of the illustration of fish within a chalkboard maybe drawn by using a handwriting with a chalk, and when a white wallsurface is projected, drawing is performed by using a handwriting with ablack felt pen.

The projectors 11-2 and 11-3 may also have a speaker on the back side ofthe projection surface, to enable a sound effect to be output from thespeaker on the back side of each projection surface in synchronizationwith the image. In this case, since the material of the projectionsurface used in the projector 11-1 is different from the materials ofthe projection surfaces used in the projectors 11-2 and 11-3, differenttypes of sound effect data are used between outputting a sound effectsynchronized with the handwriting image projected by the projector 11-1and outputting a sound effect synchronized with to the image projectedby the projectors 11-2 and 11-3.

As described above, a plurality of projectors can be installed in theprojection system.

Other Examples

Although the information to be projected by the projector 11 has beenentered by using the tablet terminal 1, input may also be made by usinganother device such as a PC or a smartphone.

In addition, although mainly the cases of projecting the informationthat has been manually entered have been described, any means such as akeyboard or a voice may be used for entering information to beprojected.

Although a picture represented by the character is projected asadditional information, content to be projected as additionalinformation can be different as appropriate. For instance, additionalinformation to be projected may be a photograph (an image), a movingpicture, a website screen, or an advertisement that is related to theentered characters.

An effect in accordance with the type of the projection surface may bereflected also on the display of the handwriting on the tablet terminal1. In this case, the control device 13, for example, transmits theinformation of the type of the projection surface to the tablet terminal1, the information of the type being determined by the control device 13The process unit 101A of the tablet terminal 1 causes a handwritingimage to be displayed and a sound effect to be output, with an effect inaccordance with the type of the projection surface, on the basis of thetype information transmitted from the control device 13. The controldevice 13 may directly transmit to the tablet terminal 1 the data of thehandwriting image itself and the sound effect itself with the effect.

Information directly entered in a projection range by the user may alsobe projected. In this case, an RGB camera or a depth sensor to performsensing on an area including the projection range is installed in theprojection system 2. On the basis of a result of the sensing performedby the RGB camera, the depth sensor, or other equipment, informationregarding the operation of the user, such as which parts are touched bythe user's finger or hand in the projection range, is obtained. Theobtained information is then used to perform a process similar to thatin the case of using the handwriting information transmitted from thetablet terminal 1. An input by using the tablet terminal 1 and a directinput in the projection range may be made possible for use at the sametime.

<Example of Configuration of Computer>

The series of the processes described above may be performed by means ofhardware, or by means of software. In a case of performing the series ofthe processes by means of software, a program that configures thesoftware is installed in a computer built into a specialized hardware, apersonal computer for general purpose use, or the like, from a programrecording medium.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardwareconfiguration of the computer that performs the series of the processesdescribed above by using the program.

A CPU 1001, a ROM 1002, and a RAM 1003 are connected with each other viaa bus 1004.

An input and output interface 1005 is further connected with the bus1004. An input unit 1006 including a keyboard, a mouse, and the like,and an output unit 1007 including a display, a speaker, and the like areconnected with the input and output interface 1005. In addition, astorage unit 1008 including a hard disk, a non-volatile memory, and thelike, a communication unit 1009 including a network interface and thelike, and a drive 1010 to drive a removable medium 1011 are connectedwith the input and output interface 1005.

In the computer configured as described above, the series of theprocesses described above are performed in a manner that the CPU 1001loads the program stored in, for example, the storage unit 1008, to theRAM 1003 via the input and output interface 1005 and the bus 1004, andthen executes the loaded program.

The program to be executed by the CPU 1001 is provided by, for example,being recorded in the removable medium 1011, or via a wired or wirelesstransmission medium such as a local area network, the Internet, or adigital broadcasting, and is installed in the storage unit 1008.

Note that the program to be executed by the computer may be a program inwhich the processes are sequentially performed in the order described inthis specification, or may be a program in which the processes areperformed in parallel, or at each required timing such as when beingcalled.

In this specification, a system means an aggregation of a plurality ofcomponents (such as devices and modules (parts)), and the componentsneed not to be present in a single housing all together. Therefore, aplurality of devices that are placed in different housings and connectedwith each other via a network, and a single device in which a pluralityof modules is placed in a single housing, are both the system.

The embodiment of the present technology is not limited to theabove-described embodiments. Various modifications can be made within ascope not deviating from the gist of the present technology.

For instance, the present technology can be achieved in a configurationin a form of cloud computing in which a single function is divided andperformed by a plurality of devices in cooperation via a network.

In addition, the individual steps described in the flowchart above canbe performed by not only a single device but also by a plurality ofdevices.

Furthermore, in a case where a single step includes a plurality ofprocesses, the plurality of processes included in the single step can beperformed not only by a plurality of devices but also by a singledevice.

Note that the effects described in this specification are only examples,which are not limited, and other effects may be present.

<Example of Combination of Configuration>

The present technology can also be achieved in a configuration describedbelow.

(1)

A control device including

a process unit that causes an image representing input information to beprojected onto a projection surface so as to follow an input of theinput information, with an effect in accordance with a type of theprojection surface.

(2)

The control device according to (1) above further including a soundeffect control unit that causes a sound effect synchronized with theimage representing the input information to be output, as an effect inaccordance with the type of the projection surface.

(3)

The control device according to (2) above in which

the sound effect control unit causes a speaker to output the soundeffect, the speaker being installed on a back side of the projectionsurface.

(4)

The control device according to (2) or (3) above in which

the sound effect control unit causes the sound effect to be output, thesound effect varying in accordance with a time elapsed from start ofinput of the input information.

(5)

The control device according to any of (2) to (4) above in which

the sound effect control unit causes the sound effect to be output, thesound effect being different in accordance with the type of theprojection surface.

(6)

The control device according to any of (1) to (5) above in which

the process unit determines the type of the projection surface on thebasis of information regarding the projection surface, the informationbeing obtained by performing a sensing process for the projectionsurface.

(7)

The control device according to (6) above in which

the information regarding the projection surface includes informationindicating a material of the projection surface, and

the effect corresponds to the information indicating the material of theprojection surface.

(8)

The control device according to any of (1) to (7) above in which

the input information is manually entered by a user and transmitted froma mobile terminal, and

the process unit causes the image representing a trajectory of themanual input to be projected.

(9)

The control device according to (8), further including

a recognition unit that recognizes, on the basis of the inputinformation, a character entered by the user, in which

the process unit causes the image, in which a picture moves, to beprojected, the picture showing a recognition result of the character.

(10)

A control method including a step of causing an image representing inputinformation to be projected onto a projection surface so as to follow aninput of the input information, with an effect in accordance with a typeof the projection surface.

(11)

A program that causes a computer to perform a process including a stepof causing an image representing input information to be projected ontoa projection surface so as to follow an input of the input information,with an effect in accordance with a type of the projection surface.

(12)

A projection system including a control device having an image controlunit that causes an image representing input information to be projectedso as to follow an input of the input information, and a sound effectcontrol unit that causes a sound effect in accordance with a type of aprojection surface of the image to be output in synchronization with theimage representing the input information,

a projection device that projects the image representing the inputinformation onto the projection surface, the image being supplied fromthe control device, and another projection device that projects apredetermined image onto a projection surface different from theprojection surface, the predetermined image being supplied from thecontrol device.

(13)

The projection system according to (12) above, further including

a speaker installed on a back side of the projection surface onto whichthe image representing the input information is projected.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1 Tablet terminal-   11 Projector-   12 Speaker-   13 Control device-   101 Handwriting input unit-   111 Handwriting information obtaining unit-   112 Handwriting process unit-   113 Image and sound process unit-   114 Image control unit-   115 Sound effect control unit-   121 Image output unit-   131 Sound effect output unit

1. A control device comprising a process unit that causes an imagerepresenting input information to be projected onto a projection surfaceso as to follow an input of the input information, with an effect inaccordance with a type of the projection surface.
 2. The control deviceaccording to claim 1, further comprising a sound effect control unitthat causes a sound effect synchronized with the image representing theinput information to be output, as an effect in accordance with the typeof the projection surface.
 3. The control device according to claim 2,wherein the sound effect control unit causes a speaker to output thesound effect, the speaker being installed on a back side of theprojection surface.
 4. The control device according to claim 2, whereinthe sound effect control unit causes the sound effect to be output, thesound effect varying in accordance with a time elapsed from start ofinput of the input information.
 5. The control device according to claim2, wherein the sound effect control unit causes the sound effect to beoutput, the sound effect being different in accordance with the type ofthe projection surface.
 6. The control device according to claim 2,wherein the process unit determines the type of the projection surfaceon a basis of information regarding the projection surface, theinformation being obtained by performing a sensing process for theprojection surface.
 7. The control device according to claim 6, whereinthe information regarding the projection surface includes informationindicating a material of the projection surface; and the effectcorresponds to the information indicating the material of the projectionsurface.
 8. The control device according to claim 1, wherein the inputinformation is manually entered by a user and transmitted from a mobileterminal; and the process unit causes the image representing atrajectory of the manual input, to be projected.
 9. The control deviceaccording to claim 8, further comprising a recognition unit thatrecognizes, on a basis of the input information, a character entered bythe user, wherein the process unit causes the image, in which a picturemoves, to be projected, the picture showing a recognition result of thecharacter.
 10. A control method comprising a step of causing an imagerepresenting input information to be projected onto a projection surfaceso as to follow an input of the input information, with an effect inaccordance with a type of the projection surface.
 11. A program thatcauses a computer to perform a process including a step of causing animage representing input information to be projected onto a projectionsurface so as to follow an input of the input information, with aneffect in accordance with a type of the projection surface.
 12. Aprojection system, comprising: a control device including an imagecontrol unit that causes an image representing input information to beprojected so as to follow an input of the input information, and a soundeffect control unit that causes a sound effect in accordance with a typeof a projection surface of the image to be output in synchronizationwith the image representing the input information; a projection devicethat projects the image representing the input information onto theprojection surface, the image being supplied from the control device;and another projection device that projects a predetermined image onto aprojection surface different from the projection surface, thepredetermined image being supplied from the control device.
 13. Theprojection system according to claim 12, further comprising a speakerinstalled on a back side of the projection surface onto which the imagerepresenting the input information is projected.